


When It All Goes Dark

by Phoenix_Down



Category: Final Fantasy XV
Genre: AU - Business World, Chill XV, Drama, Established Relationship, M/M, Mild Language, Mild Thriller, Overprotective!Gladio, Spooky Happenings, Spooptis, Suggestive Themes, Vulnerable!Ignis, mild depictions of violence
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-09-24
Updated: 2017-09-24
Packaged: 2019-01-04 13:53:43
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 7,918
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12170193
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Phoenix_Down/pseuds/Phoenix_Down
Summary: At a Halloween Party, Ignis and Gladio go and investigate a suspicious noise in the basement. When the lights go out, however, Ignis finds that his past can come back to haunt him.





	When It All Goes Dark

**Author's Note:**

> This is my submission for the Chill XV Discord Monthly Challenge (Theme: Spooky). I hope it's as fun to read as it was to write :D

"What's cooking, good looking, you come here often?" Ignis grasped his wine glass, long fingers wrapping around the stem as he turned to face the newcomer. The voice was husky and even without turning he knew exactly who it belonged to.

He sighed. "It's just me," he turned back to his drink whilst Gladio sat next to him. There was a raised hand from the corner of his eye as Gladio grabbed the bartenders attention.

"That's not how you play the game Iggy," Gladio sighed. "It's a costume party, full of mystery, intrigue," he lowered his voice and pressed his mouth close to Ignis' ear. "The lure of sexual appeal."

Ignis pushed him away, glancing around to see if anyone had seen that very obvious public display of affection.

Gladio chuckled. "Relax, everyone's either too drunk or not paying enough attention. Plus we're wearing costumes, who's going to know who we are?" he leant in closer again, pressing a swift kiss to the side of Ignis' cheek.

Ignis pushed his boyfriend away again, although, half-heartedly. He and Gladio had been a couple for the past year and a half, it was no secret, everyone pretty much knew by this point but Ignis was a firm believer of never mixing business with pleasure.

"The CEO…" he muttered as he tried to stop Gladio's advances for the third time.

"Way too tied up with my dad to even notice what his own son is doing, let alone what we're doing," another kiss this time on his jaw.

Ignis shifted on his bar stool to scan the crowd. Sure enough, there was Noctis, son of the CEO and the man for whom Ignis was Personal Assistant to, dressed from head to foot in a shiny Bahamut costume, twerking with a Chocobo.

"I should go rescue him…" he muttered, re-arranging his own costume to cover up his modesty and getting down off the stool. It wasn't as graceful as he'd like, what with attempting to hide his costume and keep it from showing off too much skin. The result was that he stumbled and Gladio had to steady him.

"Noct is fine, he's a big boy now and that Chocobo is very obviously Prompto, the whole Sales and Marketing team is dressed up as wildlife." Ignis was steady on his feet now but Gladio still hadn't let go of him, and to ignore how closely they were pressed together he glanced around the room again. There were Moogles, Cactuars even a Garula - which, when looked at closely was actually two employees in the same costume. Most likely Biggs and Wedge. "Now then, why don't you walk me through your costume?" Gladio asked bringing Ignis' attention back to him, he eyes were hooded as he stepped back to admire Ignis.

Ignis was suddenly overcome with a bout of insecurity. Gladio had seen him naked, Kind of hard not to when they were in an intimate relationship, but there was just something about his costume that made him seem so vulnerable. He glanced at Gladio's costume it was a lot more conservative than his theme. The themes were chosen by Noctis (with a heavy input from Prompto) sealed in envelopes and distributed to the various departments. It was one of the only responsibilities Noctis had that Ignis wasn't allowed to help with.

This year the board of directors were deities. Hence why Noctis was Bahamut, his father, Regis Lucis Caelum, CEO of the Lucis Caelum Corporation was Ramuh, complete with staff that doubled as a walking stick. Gladio's father, Clarus, president and second in command was looking rather warm in a huge Titan costume. There were other members of the board walking around each representing a different deity. As well as Sales and Marketing being wildlife, Research and Development were all mad scientists (the easiest to spot was Ravus Nox Fleuret as an extremely tall Dr Neo Cortex from the Crash Bandicoot video games, he'd also managed to coerce his partner Loqi Tummelt into being Dr Nitrus Brio), members of the Production team were all in Exineris jumpsuits, (which included Cindy Aurum in a rather revealing bikini style top combined with the bottom half of the jumpsuit), Human Resources, the small department that they were, were all messengers, with Lunafreya Nox Fleuret (Ravus' sister),  dressed eloquently as Gentiana. Which left the Security team as Hunters and Admin (Ignis' department) as Ancient Solheim.

Ignis readjusted the sheets that were precariously tied around him in a toga, swatting at Gladio's hand as he tried to (but not really) help him fix it. That was literally all he was wearing; a bed sheet, pinned over the shoulder with a laurel leaf. Ancient Solheim, really. The other members of his team didn't seem to mind it, though and so once again Ignis was outvoted. It had happened last year as well when they had to dress up like  Ancient Lucians (no top half and leather skirts, because apparently, the only thing that was remembered about Ancient Lucis was the gladiators.)

"It's erm, very revealing…" Ignis blushed as Gladio placed a hand on his shoulders, pushed him out to arm's length and twirled him to admire him once more.

"You're not shy are you?" Gladio asked pulling him closer again. Ignis blushed, the sheet was barely a barrier between Gladio's leather hunter outfit and his own skin.

"No, it's simply a new sensation… ah.." He involuntarily let out a moan as Gladio deepened his hug and rolled his hips at the same time, the leather doing nothing to hide the fairly obvious bulge in his trousers. Ignis flinched and quickly pushed Gladio away, this wasn't the time or place. "Personal relations…" he muttered busying himself with his toga, getting it to sit just right on his chest.

"Heh, my dad and the big boss do it all the time," Gladio shrugged but let Ignis go all the same. The younger man glanced up at him, eyes burning.

"I do not want to hear about your father's personal life with the CEO of our company."

Gladio shrugged, "Heh, come over to mine tonight and you'll really hear their personal life." he grimaced at the suggestion and Ignis groaned. He bit back a jib when the radio attached to Gladio's hip flared into life.

"Gladio? Over"

"Receiving. What's up? Over."

"Reports of strange sounds in the basement, do a recon, over."

"Willco, boss, strange sounds in the basement, over."

"Report back, over and out" the radio died in Gladio's hand and he looked up at Ignis a small suggestive look on his face.

"Strange sounds in the basement eh? Probably a couple of interns necking it behind the filing cabinets. What's say you and I check it out, send them on their merry way then fully explore this fine outfit you're wearing," a hand brushed his shoulder and Ignis shivered, they both knew Gladio was referring to what was under the sheets and not the actual sheets themselves.

Ignis glanced over at Noctis, whilst he and his department (all the other personal assistants and secretaries) had planned and set up the party, he had no real duties during the party other than to make sure Noctis arrived, mingled and left all in one piece. Ever since his old school friend Prompto had gotten a job taking photos for  Sales and Marketing, he'd been doing all three of those things without Ignis' help. Noctis and Prompto the Chocobo were currently huddled in a corner, pouring over Prompto's camera, he'd be fine for a time. He looked up at Gladio and gave a quick nod of assent. Gladio grinned, his eyes wide before grabbing Ignis by the wrist and dragging him out of the main conference room.

~*~

"Eager much," Ignis grumbled when Gladio finally stopped and dropped his wrist allowing him to rearrange his sheets.

"I don't know why you keep arranging them, we both know they're not going to be on you for very long," Gladio grunted, examining the door to the basement. It was slightly ajar, so much for being a secure unit. There was no forced sign of entry though so whoever was down there had a right to be. He nudged the door open with his foot and untucked his shirt to allow him easy access to the gun holstered underneath it.

The door squeaked, metal hinges in need of an oil and Ignis flinched, drawing closer to him and Gladio smirked. "Scared?" he teased.

"No," Ignis stammered and cleared his throat. "Just protecting you."

"Uhuh, you stick to keeping appointments and leave the protecting up to me. Now stay close." He put his arm back to grab Ignis' wrist once more and pulled him closer. Ignis rested a hand on his broad shoulders and stepped in time with Gladio when he moved forward.

"Why do I have to be this close if it's a couple of interns, as you say, "necking" it?" Ignis whispered and Gladio was glad Ignis couldn't see his smirk.

"Company policy," he replied. It wasn't really but he'd be blown if he wasn't taking full advantage of the fact that his boyfriend was wearing nothing but a sheet. He shuffled to the top step and glanced down into the darkness. "Security!" he called boldly. "You have five minutes to finish up and get yourselves decent before I bust your asses for being in a secured area."

"Gladio…" Ignis admonished but Gladio instead lets go of Ignis' wrist to place a finger on his lips.

"Shush love, let me do my job." In his head he counted to 120 before hitting a switch at the top of the stairs, a low light turned on, flashing faintly as it warmed up, it cast a low glow on the stairs but it was at least enough to light their way. Ensuring that Ignis' hand was still firmly planted on his shoulder he took a step forward, slowly walking down the stairs.

There was silence, just the sound of their footsteps on the wooden steps, the sound of Ignis breathing in his ear. The lights flickered, and Gladio realised that the atmosphere, the lighting, the whole thing, was very appropriate considering it was Halloween, there was a spooky atmosphere to the whole thing. Gladio was never one to get scared easily, but he didn't want Ignis to get scared, maybe he should stay behind? The lights flickered again and Ignis drew closer.

"Careful love," Gladio whispered as he stumbled on the stairs. He reached behind him to grab his wrist once more. Rubbing his thumb in little circles on the inside of Ignis' wrist, he grinned as Ignis moaned lightly at the touch. "Steps are perilous you know.

The lights flickered a third time before finally giving out. There was silence other than gasp that Ignis gave as he pressed closer still, There was still a bit of light from the open door at the top of the stairs but it wasn't enough. Why would the lights go out? He thought this place was supposed to be high-tech. Then again, they were descending into a basement full of paper files and records. There were a few nerves now, mainly for Ignis. Gladio knew that he never really liked the dark, not after an incident a couple years ago had nearly left him blind. Still holding on to Ignis wrists, his thumb stroking reassuringly, he used his other hand to grabbed a flashlight from its holder on his belt. He flicked it on and swept it across the basement. They were three-quarters of the way from the bottom, boxes and locked filing cabinets littered the wide open space, providing adequate cover for a pair of randy interns. He turned to face Ignis, who was standing slightly worried on the step above him.

"You can go back if you want, maybe go find someone in maintenance to get the lights fixed?" his voice was gentle, soothing and what Ignis needed to hear. He nodded slightly and removed his hand from Gladio's shoulder before starting to head back up the stairs. Gladio shined the flashlight to allow him to see the steps and the light from the open door at the top helped as well.

Ignis had barely gotten three steps up from Gladio when the door at the top of the stairs slammed shut. The sound reverberating through the room, creating echoes. Ignis jumped at the sound and Gladio covered the distance between them, two steps at a time. He gathered the man into a hug. Even he had jumped, and there was a sinking feeling in the pit of his stomach. The lights, then a door that was heavy and had been ajar for astrals know how long had suddenly closed. Something wasn't quite right, but he didn't have time to dwell too much. Ignis was in the dark.

"I'm fine Gladio," Ignis insisted, pushing Gladio away when he tightened his grip on him. "Just a little spooked." Gladio could tell though that Ignis was only putting on a brave face, he knew his boyfriend enough that this for him, locked in a dark room with no light was probably the worst thing that could happen.

He grasped Ignis hand, linking their fingers together and shining the flashlight up the stairs. "Come on, let's get you back to the light.

Ignis squeezed his hand gratefully and the two continued back up the stairs. The door, however, was locked.

"The security system," Ignis said and pointed to the small keypad on the door. Gladio nodded and typed in his number, frowning slightly when it flashed "ACCESS DENIED" in bright red letters. He tried again only to receive the same message. Ignis was frowning as well, and carefully pushed his hand out of the way to try his own code, then Noctis' before finally trying Regis'. Nothing. "System must be down."

"I'll call it in," Gladio said gruffly dropping Ignis' hand in order to get to the radio on his hip.

"Cor? Over."

Static.

"Marshal Leonis. Over?"

More Static.

"Hello?"

"The basement has a frequency jammer on it," Ignis said slowly and Gladio pulled out his phone to check. "See no signal. It's so no-one can photograph or communicate company secrets."

"Well, that's a security nightmare," Gladio muttered. "You got your notebook on you?"

Ignis glanced at him incredulously. "And where would I have the place to put the notebook in this outfit? Hmm?"

Gladio could think of one specific place that could fit a notebook, but he didn't say it out loud. Instead, he riffled through the pockets on his belt, looking for something that he could use. His penknife, his phone, his gun holster, even the pocket that held the hunting knife on his left thigh held nothing. He did find a stick of gum sitting at the bottom of his flashlight pocket, and he chewed on it thoughtfully as he tried to figure out a plan.

"What did you need paper for anyway," Ignis asked.

"Was going to write and message and try and slip it under the door, in the hopes someone one would come by, read it and send for help."

"There's a phone at the bottom of the stairs, it's internal and goes straight to Cor's office. It works during a systems failure so that on the off-chance someone is stuck in here they can phone for help."

Gladio just stared at him. "You wait until now to tell me this?"

Ignis raised his arms in defence. "I thought you knew, you work in security."

Gladio rolled his eyes, switched on the flash on his phone and handed it to Ignis, so they could both see where they were going. "You okay to continue on?" he grasped his hand again squeezing tightly. Ignis squeezed his hand back in return and together they went back down the stairs.

~*~

They reached the bottom of the stairs, and Ignis led the way to the phone he knew would help them. Gladio's hand in his, the two flashlights being the only comfort he had. He was terrified. He didn't want to show it to Gladio, but the way Gladio kept checking in on him, meant that a. he knew and b. truly cared for him and not for the first time did Ignis feel completely blessed to have someone like Gladio in his life.

He lifted the handset of the phone, there were no buttons, it would automatically connect to the main security office. This was all being well if the phone actually worked. Instead of the dial tones of the phone ringing through, Ignis was met with silence. He replaced the handset and turned to look at Gladio.

"Dammit," Gladio ran a hand through his hair and Ignis moved closer to him, allowing his big arms to wrap around him reassuringly. "I'll scout around," he said finally. "See if there's another phone somewhere or something I can use to boost a signal. Maybe even a breaker box to trip some wires or something."

"I'll go with you," but the look Gladio gave him then, broke his heart. It was soft and apologetic and Ignis knew he would have to be left alone.

"I'm sorry, love," he said finally, pulling Ignis into a hug and giving him a kiss on the top of his head. "I need you to go back upstairs, start banging on the door whilst I look around down here. Take my phone, maybe see if you can't angle it to try and get a signal, the gap at the bottom perhaps. Try anything you can to draw attention to us. I won't be long."

Gladio was right,  they both knew it. Despite the fact that Ignis didn't want to be left alone, in the semi-darkness with nothing to distract him, it had to be done. They had to split up. He nodded with resolve and started back towards the stairs, Gladio's phone providing the light to see where he needed to go.

"Ignis," he turned back and Gladio was gathering him up in a hug again. "I'm so sorry," he kissed him, not a playful kiss like he'd been giving all night, but one of passion, of love and it was exactly what Ignis needed. A distraction.

He clambered quickly up the stairs so he could turn and watch Gladio disappear into the darkness of the basement. He positioned himself sitting on the top step so that he could see both the door and the light from Gladio's flashlight as he explored looking for alternatives. Whilst Gladio's suggestions had been sound, Ignis knew they wouldn't work. The door was reinforced steel, the only thing he would gain from knocking on it would be a sore hand.  It was also air-tight, no gaps at all. The basement was where the Lucis Caelum Corporation kept all the hard copies of their research and files. Personal files, old and new research, everything was locked away in here, the room was air-tight, fireproof and bomb proof. Only those with extremely high clearance had access to the files. Which begged the question of who had gotten in in the first place?

Sighing and rubbing his eyes underneath his glasses, he stared at Gladio's phone in his hands. The light providing little reassurance, his fear of the dark was a recent thing. He'd never been afraid when he was a child, but sometimes traumatic experiences just trigger fears in people.

The Lucis Caelum company never used to be solely run by Regis, it had once been a joint venture between him and his brother. Ardyn. They worked well together researching the phenomena that were Daemons and selling advanced technology to other companies that could help everyday people live in peace. Things like car head lights, flashlights, medicine to combat the terrible disease that the Daemons brought with them. Ignis started working with the company two years ago when he was 18, interning whilst studying at university. He was the personal assistant to Ardyn, a much-revered position, however, something happened. No-one knew the reason but one-day Ardyn just snapped, a mental breakdown they'd called it. Tried to take over the whole company and attempted to kill his own brother in the process. The building had been evacuated thanks to the security team but Ignis had been left behind with another intern. Ravus. Together they managed to make their way through the building, Ardyn had hired help to sweep through and take over, so they had to hide and quite often fight their way out of the building. They had almost made it, they'd been standing at the front doors to the building, Ravus that little faster, went first followed by Ignis. But something had stopped Ignis, a shadow stepping out of the darkness. Ardyn. Torn between his own safety and the loyalty to his employer Ignis hesitated. That one move, that one act, almost cost him his life.  In a flash Ardyn had ordered his 'friends' to pin him to the floor, his glasses smashed into his face, glass shattering, shards flying into his eyes. He couldn't move and more terrifyingly enough he couldn't see.

It had taken eight months but Ignis' eyesight slowly returned, he still had to wear glasses, a specially made set that wouldn't break and that was a slightly stronger prescription to accommodate his eyes. It was also how he'd met Gladio, he'd been the first member of the security team to reach him. He'd gathered him up in his arms and carried him outside to the ambulances. He then proceeded to stay by his bedside, reading him stories, soothing him and giving detailed descriptions of what was going on around him. Ignis had fallen in love with his voice, and soon the man behind the voice.

There was a loud bang from the depths of the basement, a curse, then an even louder bang. "I'm okay," Gladio called and Ignis smiled. "Stubbed my toe…"

Ignis watched Gladio's light as it navigated the maze that was filing cabinets and storage containers. It would fade in and out, as Gladio turned or ducked down to examine something but always came back a couple of minutes later. The light ducked down and Ignis watched and waited for the light to come back. Only it didn't. His heart hammered in his throat as he waited five minutes, then ten, finally at fifteen he called out.

"Gladio?" there was no answer. He slowly stood up, holding the phone high above his head in hopes that the beam would allow him to see where his boyfriend was. He took a tentative step forward, stepping down. "Gladio?" He called again, a little louder this time. Had there ever been anyone in here in the first place? He took another step forward, then another and before long he was at the bottom of the stairs. Flashlight sweeping around, Ignis looked around, it was eerily quiet, even though he'd only been blind for eight months he'd learned to rely very heavily on his other senses. More specifically his hearing. The silence was disconcerting, he should have at least been able to hear Gladio shuffling about.

He started walking towards, what he hoped, was Gladio's last known location. Phone held out in front of him. His shoulder bumped into something, his hand jarring, the phone dropping to the floor. Heart pounding, Ignis dove for it, scrambling to pick it up. It had landed light face down so that it created a little aura around the phone. He grasped it, but his hands met something else. Something cold, hard and pressing down on the phone stopping him from picking it up.

"Well, well, well." A voice echoed from the dark and Ignis stopped breathing. He knew that voice, that wasn't  a voice he wanted to hear in the dark. "How is my old intern?"

A hand joined Ignis on the phone and Ignis drew back, he had fallen to his hands and knees when he dove for the phone, now he pushed up to just his knees to scoot away from the voice. The hand picked up the phone, light shining in his eyes, the light turned and illuminated the last thing that Ignis saw before something heavy connected with the back of his head.

The face of Ardyn.

~*~

Noctis needed Ignis, there were all these people asking him questions vying for his attention and he didn't remember a single name. What good was a personal assistant when he wasn't where he needed to be. He scanned the hall again, looking for the familiar honey blonde hair, or the sparkle of glasses. He then started looking around for Gladio, if Ignis wasn't with Noctis then he would probably be with Gladio. But the taller, dark-haired man was nowhere to be seen either.

A Chocobo glomped on him from behind with a soft "kweh," and Noctis turned in mild surprise.

"What's up, Sherlock?" Prompto asked voice muffled through the mascot head he was wearing.

"You haven't seen Ignis or Gladio have you?"

The Chocobo shook his head or tried to, instead the head of the mascot turned 90 degrees and Prompto had to readjust it so it fitted better.

Noctis frowned, it wasn't like Ignis to just up a leave, plus Gladio was on duty. He did another sweep of the hall before grabbing Prompto's wing and dragging him over to the very person who would definitely know where at least one of his friends was.

"Where's Gladio?" he demanded to Cor, scowling. He probably looked and sounded like a petulant child, but he didn't care. Ignis had left him to fend for himself and he wasn't happy.

Cor frowned, well he was always frowning, but he deepened his frown down at the young Bahamut glaring up at him. "Doing a reconnaissance."

Noctis dropped his scowl and instead looked thoughtful.

"What's this about Noct?" Prompto asked him, ignoring the amused look Cor was giving him.

"I need Ignis, I haven't seen him and I need him." Prompto cocked his head to the side, overly exaggerated by the fact he had to place his "wings" on either side of his head to stop it from falling going off. "Oh for… just take the damn head off," Noct snapped whilst Cor stifled a grin.

"And ruin the magic? Nah man, let the people believe!"

"I can look for him on the cameras," Cor suggested quickly before Noctis could decapitate the overly excited Chocobo. Noctis nodded before he grabbed Prompto by the wing again and followed Cor to his office.

The main security office was just a room filled with television monitors, each containing a single feed from the thousands of cameras they had in the Lucis Caelum building, and even some from out of the building. Noctis noticed the entrance hall to his apartment complex and one of his front door, but thankfully nothing from inside.

Cor had pursed his lips upon entering, the place was empty, which Noctis knew should never happen. The room needed to be monitored at all times.

"Dude why are those ones dark? Do you not have night vision in there?" Prompto asked, in the safety of the security office he'd finally removed his head, holding it tentatively under his wing. Noctis glanced up to where Prompto had indicated, there were a whole two rows of monitors in which all the cameras were pitch black.

Cor looked up and scowled. "That's the basement," he tapped a few buttons on the main console, bringing the cameras back online, just in time to see a rather disturbing scene.

On the cameras was Ignis, he was on his knees, peering at a figure that was emerging from the dark. Noctis strained to see who it was, a man, with a rather elaborate coat, scarfs and a shirt that reminded him of coffee filters stepped into the camera view and Cor swore.

"Ardyn."

Noctis froze and blinked, he had still been in school when Ardyn had his breakdown and tried to kill Noctis' father, however, he'd heard all about it, he'd also heard how Ignis had gotten hurt…

"Cor, Ignis is with him!"

Cor sprang to action, he grabbed the radio that was clipped to his hip and barked in a quick order. "All units, Code Izunia, I repeat Code Izunia!"

Noctis and Prompto watched slightly terrified as on the screens dozens of people dressed like hunters all snapped to attention. There was a flurry of activity as they went about their assigned duties, the very code giving everyone a specific task to do. It didn't take too long before footsteps could be heard in the hall outside and Titan and Ramuh entered the room.

"Dad!" Noctis exclaimed, causing the Ramuh to look at him. "Ardyn's got, Iggy!"

"Where's Gladio?" Titan asked, before removing the mask he was wearing. Clarus Amicitia glared at Cor and Noctis didn't think he'd ever seen Cor shrink back in fear before.

A wing clobbered Noctis over the head and he turned to see Prompto enthusiastically pointing at a screen. "There's Gladdy!"

The five men all leaned forward to watch as Ardyn dragged an unconscious Gladio over to an equally unconscious Ignis. He tied their hands behind their backs before tying them together, back to back leaning on each other for support. There was collective swear from at least three of the watchers.

"Sir?" a head popped into the office, one that Noctis knew belonged to Nix Ulric, one of the security guards. He had a team of twelve out in the hallway with him.

Cor glanced at Clarus who grimaced but nodded. "Detaining Ardyn is the priority," Cor said. "He cannot get away with anything from the basement."

Noctis froze. "But Ignis!" he yelled. "Gladio!"

Regis looked at him sympathetically. "We cannot let Ardyn getaway, the research in there, the files could all be detrimental if we let him get away…."

"Fuck you!" Noctis yelled they were his friends in there, Ignis had already been hurt by that monster, he couldn't, no wouldn't let it happen again. He whirled around, Bahamut wings knocking items off shelves as he grabbed Prompto's wing once more and stormed out the office.

~*~

"Noct! Noct!" Prompto's cries fell on deaf ears as he was roughly pulled through the darkened hallways, there wasn't a soul around and the lights had all been dimmed as per Code Izunia. He was worried for his friends as much as Noctis was, but he worried for Noctis' mental state more. Noctis had a terrible habit of not thinking things through and running head first into danger.

Noctis finally slowed when they reached a supply closet, he pushed Prompto inside first, before himself. With both their costumes it was a tight fit.

"Err… This isn't really the time for a closeted affair…" Prompto chuckled nervously as Noctis started removing parts of his costume. He remembered what happened the last time he got trapped in a closet with Noctis, let's just say he hadn't been able to sit down for a couple of days afterwards.

"Shut up and strip," Noctis grunted unbuckling the armour that was covering his arms and legs. "We're going after them, we're going to rescue them."

Relief flushed on Prompto's face, his best friend hadn't gone crazy after all, he was just having a stupidly crazy idea.

"Are you crazy?" Prompto screeched. "We're certainly no match for your uncle, the man who almost took down this whole company! That man is as crazy as you are!"

"Look all my dad cares about it the research, the files, the information that Ardyn could get his hands on. Ignis and Gladio are just collateral damage. He doesn’t care what happens to them as long as his precious company is safe!" The last piece of armour fell to the floor and he stood strong and proud, in a pair of gym shorts and a tank top. "Cor taught you how to shoot right?" Prompto nodded, he'd been hanging around Noctis enough that they thought it was wise to teach him so basic self-defence techniques. "So at the first opportunity grab a gun and don't hesitate to shoot the bastard right between the eyes," Noctis growled and grabbed a bucket, turning it upside down and standing on it. From a nearby shelf, he procured a screwdriver from inside an empty jar of varnish and started to get to work unscrewing a vent cover. He looked back over his shoulder. "Well come on, you can't rescue people looking like that."

Prompto blushed, whilst he was spurred by his friend's speech and motivated to help there was just one minor problem… he wasn't wearing any underwear

~*~

Noctis groaned as the final screw fell from the vent cover and he could move it out the way allowing entrance to the intricate network of vent shafts that combed the building. He remembered a time when he was about five or six, with his childhood friends, Luna, Ravus and Gladio, combing the vents exploring them like they were looking for hidden treasure or on daring rescue missions (these missions were usually to rescue a stuffed toy, or Gladio's sister Iris who they'd managed to coerce into hiding somewhere and waiting to be found). No-one knew these tunnels better than he did.

He glanced down at a blushing Prompto and normally would have been excited at the thought his boyfriend was wearing nothing underneath his ridiculous costume, instead he hopped down off the bucket and grabbed the Chocobo head from where it had been thrown into a corner and shoved it into Prompto's arms.

"Put the head back on, if anything we can distract people with how ridiculous you look." Prompto grinned sheepishly and placed the head back on so it rested on his shoulders. "Right," Noctis took charge, he'd spent enough time being around bodyguards and security details that he had at least a little knowledge on tactical strategies. "You go first, the vents are big enough for you chocobutt to fit, but if you do get stuck I'm at least behind you to push. We need to be quiet in the vents as the sound travels, so if I want you to go left I'll hit your left foot, right and I'll hit your right foot. If the path is straight I won't touch you. If I want you to stop I'll tap you twice on any foot. Go is three taps. Understood?"

Prompto nodded and raised a hand to salute.

"You got your camera?" another nod and this time a pat at the messenger bag he had slung over his shoulder. When Noctis had first seen Prompto's costume he wondered how he was going to be able to take photos without the use of his hands until Prompto had shown him the seams in the wings that allowed him to slip his hands out and use them normally. "Good, we might need it for evidence."

Another nod and Noctis gestured to the upturned bucket, indicating that Prompto should clamber on so he could help push him up from behind.

~*~

A left, then a right, then two lefts followed by going straight for a good couple of minutes. "There's no telling how far this shaft goes is there?" Prompto grumbled and he felt Noctis whack at his behind. The sign for shut up.

They continued on for a good couple of minutes, Prompto dutifully turning when tapped on the foot. It was eerily quiet and dark, and did Prompto mention he was claustrophobic? And acrophobic? This wasn't the best situation for him to be in, how high was he right now? What if he fell into an even smaller space. What if, and this thought made him shudder more than the other two. What if there were bugs in these vents?

Every so often there would be a grate or a covering that illuminated their path, but other than that it was dark. Noctis said no to using their phones as flashlights and so they had to suffer in silence. It was all very spooky and Prompto wasn't liking how quiet it was.

Suddenly the vent dipped and Prompto slipped. The material of his costume providing no fiction as he hurtled down the vents like it was a slide. He let out a yelp as he slid faster and faster hands, wings, feet, beak, scrabbling at anything to make his hurtling decent stop. Finally, he did stop, out of breath, terrified and perched on a vent cover at the bottom of the shaft. He glanced back up, squinting through the dark to see if he could see Noctis. There was nothing but darkness, then a small pinprick of light. Noctis must have braved turning his phone on. Reaching into his messenger bag, Prompto pulled out his own phone and shone the light back up to let Noctis know he was okay.

He sat, battered and bruised, unsure of what to do and feeling a little sorry for himself, he'd fallen a long way down and he'd been terrified. Maybe Ignis was right, maybe he should fear falling instead heights. He was starting to get pins and needles in his foot so he shifted ever so slightly, wincing when the shaft made a groaning sound as if it threatened to collapse from underneath him. Then suddenly the unthinkable happened, it was like the floor had opened up beneath him and he was falling again, this time through the open air. There was nothing for him to grab onto, he landed on the floor on his butt, cushioned nicely by his feathers, but let out a soft kweh when momentum pitched him forward so he ended up on his face. He was alive, battered, bruised and with a broken beak, but he was alive. Yes, he thought as he slowly pushed himself up. Falling is definitely scarier.

~*~

Ardyn was humming to himself as he worked, a small victory fanfare of sorts as he strutted around the basement, gathering data and files and placing them on a table, where two armoured men were working to pack them into bags. He had just grabbed a handful of financial records when there was a loud thumping sound from the vent above, there was a yelp and the sound of what sounded like rats with mittens scrabbling to get their footing. Then there was silence. He whistled over at his two men and positioned them on either side of the vent. There was a cover that granted access to the vent shafts, but it was blocked. He watched as the men trained their guns on the vent cover, watching and waiting. There was a shuffling from nearby, and Ardyn glanced over at his two prisoners. The combination of thuds and bangs had brought them both to their senses, he watched haughtily as the bigger of two came to his senses first and struggled against his bonds. There was a sob as Ignis came round as well.

Ah, Ignis. He had been a good soul, a hard worker. Smart as a tack with a wit to prove it. Ardyn often enjoyed the odd pun that came out of the young boy's mouth as he worked diligently by his side. He had sort of hoped that Ignis would have come with him, joined him on his quest, his talents wasted as a lowly personal assistant. But alas it was not meant to be and Ardyn soon had to choose between a hard worker and his freedom. His freedom won although he did feel a twinge of guilt when he ordered his men to hold him.

He'd been surprised to see the boy alive, even more so, that he wasn't blind. Maybe he could still get his assistant back. There was another sob, followed by soothing whispers. The big man, Gladiolus, if Ardyn's memory served him, was soothing the younger, smaller man. Though their hands were tied, Ardyn could see them holding onto each other.

There was a groan above them as the ventilation shaft shifted slightly, or at least whatever was blocking the covering shifted. He watched warily as one of the men, lifted his weapon higher, brushing the tip against one of the screws, testing its tightness. The cover fell with a clang on the concrete floor, Gladiolus and Ignis looked up startled as a yellow Chocobo fell through the air to land on the ground with a soft thud before pitching forward and landing face down. A kweh was expelled before their feathered friend started getting up.

A hand signal and the men had trained their guns on their intruder. Another kweh and his wings were up in the air. Ardyn couldn’t help but twitch into a smile.

"Is the poor little Chocobo lost?" he mocked, taking a step forward. "Where's your Moogle friend? There's not usually one without the other." He glanced up quickly half expecting a flying Moogle to appear.

"Oh, sorry I was looking for the bathroom," the Chocobo stuttered. Backing away slowly, he turned slightly as if to walk away when he caught sight of Ardyn's prisoners, all tied up and looking scared in a corner.

"Hold him," Ardyn snapped and the two men move quickly pinning the Chocobo under the wings and lifting him slightly. The action caused the creature to back-pedal his legs in the air in an attempt to get down.

"Now then, behind every mask, there is a face and behind that, a story." He stepped forward hand outstretched when a sound from behind him made him stop.

"Step away from the bird!" Ardyn turned, frowning. Whilst he'd been distracted by the flying ball of yellow feathers his two prisoners had somehow managed to stand up and untie themselves. Ignis stood back, a sharp hunting knife grasped in his hand. The Behemoth, Gladio looked furious, a gun grasped in his hands, trained right at Ardyn.

He glanced at the two men holding up the Chocobo and gestured with his head to the two men. They dropped the bird unceremoniously and instead trained their guns on Ignis and Gladio. The bird scrambled back and out the way, cowering behind a filing cabinet.

"Now, now,  let's all be civilised shall we?"

Gladio growled, the Chocobo whimpered, Ignis just looked at him with sad sorrowful eyes, like he felt sorry for him.

"Now Prompto!" A voice yelled from above them and before Ardyn could even react a blurring body leapt through the vent above them tackling one of his men to the floor whilst the Chocobo tackled the other. Ardyn raised his hands in defeat as two more weapons were trained on him. He glanced around at the four men standing around him.

"Well if it isn't my dear nephew. Noctis, it's been a while." Noctis stayed silent, not rising to the bait. Good lad Ardyn mussed turning his attention instead on the Chocobo.

"Does your father know you're here?" He asked smiling, he'd recognise that blonde hair and blue eyes anywhere. Especially now his costumed head was lying on the floor behind the filing cabinet. Prompto flinched at the mention of his father.

"Don't listen to him Prom," Noctis called. "Stay focused."

Prompto tightened the grip on his gun. Breathing steadily as he nodded, but Ardyn wasn't done with him. He was certainly in the running of helping him get out of the situation he was currently in. He instead turned to Ignis, his dear intern. He could see Gladio tense, protectively stepping slightly in front of the younger man as if he could protect him from Ardyn's words with just his body.

"Ignis, my dear Ignis. How it warms my heart to see you," three of the four boys standing around him flinched at his emphasis. He chuckled slightly. "Now, now Ignis. We worked so well together, didn't we? You've got so much talent I'd hate to see it go to waste. Which poor lackey do you have to clean up for now? My dear brother? Or his oaf of a lover?"

"That would be me," Noctis growled, he didn't step forward, didn't lower his ground, just fixed Ardyn with the most penetrating stare.

Ardyn turned back to Prompto. "Now then Prompto, you're going to help me get out of here aren't you. When you do I don't have to tell your father what you've been doing behind his back. Who you're working for. I think you'll find that some companies are much better than others. I would hate for you to making friends with the wrong sort."

Prompto moistened his lips, glanced at Noctis over Ardyn's shoulder, flickered his gaze over to Ignis and Gladio on his left before looking back at Noctis. He then gazed determinedly at Ardyn.

"I think I can tell who the wrong sort are for myself, thanks," he said and Ardyn scowled. Ignis it was then, he just had to get through the junior oaf to do it. He has a sister, doesn't he? Ardyn was not adverse to blackmail or toying with matters of the heart.

There was a bang and a yell before what sounded like a herd of Garula running down the stairs. Ardyn swivelled only to be tackled to the floor by at least six of the Garula, he was unarmed, and he told them as much.

"Target acquired," came a voice from his left and Ardyn turned his head slightly, the movement although innocent to Ardyn, caused one of his captures to hit his head with the blunt end of his gun. He passed out before he got a chance to see who had been his downfall.

~*~

The four friends sat huddled around a table in the empty conference hall. Everyone had gone home after being told the situation was under control, nobody felt like continuing the festivities after what had happened. All four of them had been checked over by paramedics and given statements to local authorities, Prompto and Ignis had both been given more appropriate clothing to wear and they were all sat in silence drinking coffee. Or in Noctis' case, hot chocolate.

"I think we can say that this year's festivities were much better than last year," Gladio said softly with a smile towards Ignis. "You and the other P.A's really outdid yourself."

The other three chuckled softly. Ignis looked over at Noctis.

"Next year I'm going to be in charge of costumes."

"I don't know," Prompto pipped up. "Did you see Ardyn's face when I fell through the air as a Chocobo? And then again when I tackled that guy to the ground knocking him out. I was like Rainbow Warp in the Episode of My Little Chocobo where Rainbow Warp and Ulwaatjack have to save Princess Moogle from the evil Cactuar King."

This brought more smiles and even a few chuckles to the four friends.

"We should head home," Gladio said finally after the four of them had gone silent and went to stand. Ignis nodded slowly, before looking around at his friends. He didn't really want to stay alone tonight.

Noctis saw his glance. "Why don't you guys stay over," he suggested and both Gladio and Ignis looked relieved at the idea. Ignis because he wouldn't be alone and Gladio because there was no safer place than Noctis' apartment complex.

"Yeah!! We could stay up all night swapping spooky stories and in the morning…" Prompto paused dramatically. "Ignis can make waffles!!"

**Author's Note:**

> So many fourth wall breaks!! Can you name all the quotes I littered in here lol? There are three main ones that aren't FFXV, see if you can find them :D  
>    
> Thanks to everyone on Chill XV!


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